Saturday, September 28

Tribute Cornwall and Devon League

Bude 22

Liskeard-Looe 10

JOE Wilson was at the double once more as Bude kept up their encouraging start to the season with a 22-10 victory over Liskeard-Looe at Bencoolen Meadow.

The hosts lost 26-19 at Lanner last time out but flew out of the blocks to go 12-0 up inside 11 minutes before leading 17-7 at the break.

The second-half was a much more mundane affair but it didn’t matter as Olly Mounce’s try ensured a crucial bonus point.

Player/coach Angus Hodges made six changes from the week before with three in the pack and the same on the outside.

In the forwards, Matt Williams and Tremaine Fry were promoted from the bench in place of Hodges, who was ruled out following a nasty cheekbone injury suffered at Lanner, and Finley Fry, while Joel Troke, usually utilised in the second-row, took the place of Freddie Saxton at blindside-flanker.

Charlie Watton recovered from injury to line-up at fly-half in place of Steve Yates which allowed Ryan Butler to retain his place at inside-centre. He was joined in the midfield by Ed Hilliam-Cooke, who had to work last Saturday. Andy Yates wasn’t included in the matchday 18.

The final change saw Kiwi, Callum Bettington promoted from the seconds to start on the left-wing in place of Jack Horwell, who was amongst the replacements.

Bude took control from kick-off and scored within five minutes in classic fashion, as Wilson finished after he picked the ball up at the base of a ruck and crashed over from close-range. The conversion was missed.

Although Bude threw the ball around, it was their forward dominance which gave them a second try on 11 minutes.

A penalty was kicked into the corner and from the resulting lineout ten metres out, a driving maul was set up which proved too hot to handle for the visitors, giving Wilson his second of the afternoon. Skipper Olly Denford kicked the extras and the hosts were 12-0 up.

Liskeard enjoyed a solid first season back in the Cornwall and Devon League under the guidance of former Launceston coach Neil Bayliss and got back into the game before the half hour.

Like the hosts, a driving maul was set up from a penalty to the corner, but instead the visitors peeled off down the blindside and had a two-on-one which they scored from.

At 12-7 the game was in the balance, but Bude got their noses further in front before the break as more work through the forwards ended with flanker, Tremaine Fry crashing over from seven yards after slipping a tackle. The conversion was missed but at 17-7, Bude had control.

It then took the hosts less than five minutes of the second-half to grab their bonus point try. Again a penalty was kicked to the corner, again a driving maul was set up, but this time it was scrum-half Olly Mounce who finished it off (22-7).

The second-half saw both sides look to utilise their forwards as much as possible but neither had much luck.

A penalty got the score back to 22-10 but that was how it stayed until the end as the hosts tired.

Hodges, who took his place on the sidelines was quietly pleased with his side’s work.

He said: “Overall it was a really positive, bonus point win. There was a lot of positive plays and structure, so there were signs of progression, which was really good.

“We’re beginning to see some of the really positive rugby which we want to be playing but we’re just not maintaining it at the moment throughout the whole 80 minutes. But we’re definitely taking steps forward, and hopefully each week we’ll get that bit closer.

“It was nice to see the backs with a bit of confidence, especially in the first-half and as ever the forwards were pretty dominant.”

Wilson and Butler were awarded the joint man-of-the-match award.

Hodges said: “Both of them played really well. They made lots of carries.”

Bude head to mid-Devon side North Tawton on Saturday — the third promoted side they’ll have faced in their opening five games.

North Tawton have adapted well so far, winning and losing half of their four fixtures.

Their two home games have seen them ease past Tavistock 26-0 before being edged out 13-9 by Torquay, and Hodges is focusing on themselves.

?He said: “We don’t know much about them but like most weeks we need to focus on what we do and what they try and do. Our biggest downfall at the moment is getting sucked into a game style that is easy but not very expansive and limits us a bit.

“If we focus on ourselves and play like we can then we should see another decent performance.”

Bude — Denford (captain), R Hodges, Hilliam-Cooke, Butler, Bettington, Watton, Mounce; Bolt, Wilson, Allin, Williams, Kingdon, Troke, T Fry, Statton.

Replacements: Keat, F Fry, Horwell.

Tries: Wilson 2, T Fry, Mounce.

Convs: Denford.

Pens: N/A.

Bude’s joint man-of-the-match: Joe Wilson/Ryan Butler.